Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans has again shown blatant disregard for South Shore lobster fishers. In 1998 the industry started a voluntary V-notch program with a 1/32 carapace increase to follow in 1999. Weeks before the season opens, the carapace size has been increased from 3 1/4 to 3 5/16, or a 1/16 increase instead of a 1/32 increase. Why has the government changed regulations that were agreed to in 1998?

Mr. Speaker, I would like to correct the hon. member. This was the policy on conservation put forward by the previous minister and it is something we are going to follow through on.

I would like to ask the hon. member something because his party and the member have talked about conservation repeatedly in the House. Carapace size is a tool for conservation to protect the resource. Are the Conservatives now abandoning their position on conservation and saying that we should not protect the resource? The hon. member should stand in the House and say whether or not they are still for conservation. They should make it pretty clear.

Mr. Speaker, the minister is well aware that carapace size was supposed to increase by 1/32 in 1999 and by 1/32 in 2000. That is a 1/16 increase over two years. He has increased it by jumping it in one year because of mismanagement by his department.

How are fishers that were issued a variance order for carapace size to begin on November 28 to understand that order when DFO officials are saying that they have until December 15 to bring in the carapace size increase? So why—

Mr. Speaker, increasing the carapace size is consistent with our policy throughout that region. This policy was introduced a number of years ago by my predecessor. Conservation is going to be a priority for the government. That is why we are increasing the carapace size by 1/16. We will continue to ensure that conservation and protection of our resource to make sure we have a sustainable lobster fishery will be our priority.

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health.

Eighty five per cent of Internet users are looking for health information. Can the parliamentary secretary tell the House and all Canadians how the public is to sift through the thousands of health related websites to get credible, trusted and relevant information?

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague from Wellington—Waterloo. His question gives me the opportunity to inform the House that yesterday the Minister of Health launched the Canadian health network, which is a national, bilingual Internet based health organization service for Canadians developed by Health Canada in co-operation with 400 very reliable health organizations.

Canada's health system provides a unique access to information, and I invite the public—

Mr. Speaker, earlier this week the Minister of Health hired a real insider to try to convince the Canadian public that he was committed to decreasing smoking among kids. But it was his government that instituted laws in 1994 that have committed hundreds of thousands of children to take up cigarette smoking.

Will the Minister of Health do the right thing and institute laws to bring the tobacco prices back to what they would be in the U.S. so that our kids will not smoke and smuggling will be stopped?

Mr. Speaker, there can be no doubt about the commitment made by our government and our Minister of Health to fight smoking, particularly among young people.

We have already taken important measures, and the minister has not ruled out any options for the future, whether they relate to taxes or prohibition. He will establish enhanced awareness programs in the future.

Mr. Speaker, following the lead of Japan and Europe, last week 19 representatives in the U.S. congress tabled a bill to make it mandatory in the United States to label genetically modified foods or foods containing genetically modified organisms.

My question is for the Minister of Agriculture. Does he realize that Canada may soon be one of the few countries where it is not mandatory to label genetically modified food and that our farm products may well be rejected just about everywhere, including in the United States?

Andy MitchellLiberalSecretary of State (Rural Development)(Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario)

Mr. Speaker, this is a very important issue. It is one that both the Minister of Health and the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food have been spending a great deal of time working on. It is important that we consult with Canadians. The ministers are undertaking consultations with Canadians and they will deal with this issue in due course.

Mr. Speaker, we have heard promise after promise from the government about what it will do to help Canadian children, but no action.

Ninety per cent of single mothers and their children live in poverty. One in four children in Nova Scotia experience poverty. Cape Breton children are worse off than their neighbours in the rest of the province. These statistics do not need reviewing. They are cold hard facts, especially cold and hard for the children they represent.

What specific targets is the Minister of Finance willing to set to eliminate child poverty, given that the efforts of the government to date have failed Canadian children?

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member fails to point out that the unemployment rate for adult women is at its lowest rate in 25 years. It is now at 5.8%. Since we were elected in 1993 there have been more than 800,000 jobs created for women.

Women's employment has grown faster than men's in each of the last four decades. In fact, we have had the highest growth of any of the G-7 nations in the last 20 years.

I point out to the hon. member that we are trying to deal with the causes of child poverty, the causes of women in disadvantaged conditions by making—

Mr. Speaker, on January 18 the former minister of fisheries wrote to one of our fishery representatives telling him that there would be no increase in lobster size until the industry's self-imposed V-notching program could be analysed.

Mr. Speaker, as I responded to a question earlier, carapace size is about conservation. By increasing the carapace size by 1/16 of an inch, we will protect the resource and make sure we have a sustainable lobster fishery. We will ensure that we protect the resource, unlike the member and his party. At one time they speak about conservation and the next time they are not interested in speaking about conservation. They are speaking from both sides of their mouth. Why do they not become consistent?

Mr. Speaker, I rise today with a rural question, although the closest thing to a farm in my riding is the vegetable garden in my backyard. I had a good crop this year. No need for assistance.

My people in Oshawa make the best cars and trucks in North America and their best customers are rural customers. What is the Secretary of State for Rural Development doing to ensure that rural Canadians are playing an active role in charting their own social and economic course?

Andy MitchellLiberalSecretary of State (Rural Development)(Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario)

Mr. Speaker, it is absolutely essential that government undertake policies and measures in a way that makes sense for rural Canadians.

We believe it is important to give rural Canadians themselves the tools they need to make the decisions that work best for their particular communities. That is why we undertook a very extensive rural dialogue with rural Canadians, speaking to over 7,000 of them, ending with a conference in Belleville earlier this year.

I am pleased to advise the House today that we will have a follow-up to that conference in Magog, Quebec on April 28, 29 and 30.

Mr. Speaker, when the government was transferring ownership of regional airports to the local municipalities, it relaxed the emergency response time so as not to impose excessive burdens on these local communities.

Now that the government has divested these airports, it is tightening up the rules again, requiring local communities to provide a three minute response time. This is a move that will cost dozens of communities millions of dollars each.

Why did the government entice the municipalities with relaxed requirements only to tighten up the requirements after the local governments acquired the airports?

Mr. Speaker, as we all know, safety is the top priority of the government, especially in the area of transportation. We are quite aware of the situation that is taking place. We will monitor and review every move that is made by all the agencies and the authorities regarding this question of safety.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to table in both official languages, pursuant to Standing Order 32(2), 27 treaties that came into effect in 1992 and 58 treaties that came into effect in 1991. We are also tabling the list of these treaties.

As was done previously, I am also providing CD-ROMs to the Library of Parliament, which contain electronic versions of these treaties, in order to provide wide accessibility to those texts.